by: Brent Smith at the Common Constitutionalist

Socialism never works. Look at a country like Brazil. Brazilian journalist Felipe Moura Brasil explained all about the rise and fall of his country in a segment at Pragar-U online.

In the early 2000s Brazil was a burgeoning capitalist nation. Inflation, something that plaques all socialist paradises was drastically reduced and the government had decided to give up or at least pare down its hold over many “state-run” companies. They were moving toward a free market – toward capitalism. Things were looking pretty good for Brazil.

In 2006 Brazil became one the famous BRIC nations, and American and other private investors poured their investment dollars into Brazil, looking to get in on this new free-market boom. BRIC was a group of four “emerging market” nations ripe for private investment. BRIC stands for Brazil, Russia, India, China. Not so much any more.

But they made one big mistake. You see, in a truly free society, while most succeed, some will be left behind. It’s just the way it is and has always been. Not everyone has equal talents, nor is everyone equally industrious. Politicians love to focus on these free-market inequities. They prey on the guilt of the more industrious and convince the rest that through a transfer of wealth, all can share in the bounty. Sound familiar. Are you “Feelin the Bern?” read more

by: the Common Constitutionalist

We hear it all the time from young people and it’s been repeated with each generation: It’s much harder today than it was for their parents. Of course invariably this turns out to be crap. Every generation has its challenges, but this time it may actually be worse.

Many are suffering in the stagnant Obama economy and it seems to be getting worse – not better. Those who have come of age during Obama’s reign of economic terror seem to suffering mightily.

It’s been well documented that millennials exiting college have little prospects and mountains of debt. Not a happy combination. And those who have either chosen not to attend college or simply can’t are suffering further.

For many the deck is becoming increasingly stacked against them. Beyond just the country’s overall economic anemia, there is the now gaining in popularity, “Fight for 15” – the arbitrarily chosen new “civil right” – the demand for everyone to make a minimum of $15/hr.

The “Fight for 15,” seems to picking up steam in state after state, particularly the more liberal ones who tend to have many of the largest concentrations of young minorities. These young minorities are beginning to find out what $15/hr. really means – even less opportunity for employment. No employer in the right mind will hire a young person with little to no experience nor demonstrative worth if they have a chance to instead hire an out of work 30 something. read more

According to exit polling data, in both the 2008 and 2012 elections, Millennials (young adults 18 to 33) were a reliably leftist demographic, both in their voting and their views. Now, it appears that – even though they remain decidedly liberal on political and social issues – this influential group of Americans is up for grabs in the 2014 and 2016 elections. That is to say that no specific politician or ideology can count on their support.

The Pew Research Center’s just-released survey reveals that as they move into adulthood, the Millennial generation is “at or near the highest levels of political and religious disaffiliation recorded for any generation in the quarter-century that the Pew Research Center has been polling on these topics.” In fact, Pew reports that half of that age group claims to be politically independent, and almost a third see very little difference between the two major political parties. read more